keep a sharp eye

The college season gets into full swing starting Friday, when the Division I programs launch. There’s so much to watch for. The Scott Berry era begins at Southern Miss, and Barrett Rey debuts at Alcorn State. Ole Miss is rebuilding but still carries high expectations, as does Mississippi State in John Cohen’s second season as coach. Jackson State faces a tough and perhaps telling opening doubleheader at South Alabama. Mississippi Valley State starts a compelling three-game series against visiting Notre Dame (see previous post). Among the small schools, Gulf Coast Athletic Conference rivals Belhaven and William Carey hook up in Hattiesburg. Millsaps plays a big Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference series at Southwestern in Texas. … But don’t overlook this little series that also starts Friday: Tougaloo at LSU-Shreveport. The watch is on for the Bulldogs’ first win in GCAC play. They are 0-74. That’s right zero and seventy-four since they began playing an official GCAC schedule in 2008. The GCAC might fall apart after this season, when Belhaven, Carey and others depart for another league. So 2010 may be Tougaloo’s last crack at this conference. USM alumnus Robert Franciskato took over the program last season and went 1-47. The Bulldogs are 0-5 this year, not including a pair of losses to Southwest Mississippi CC. They’ll have their hands full with perennial GCAC power LSU-S. But there has been a sign of progress. Bulldogs outfielder William Walker was named the GCAC player of the week on Feb. 9, a first for the program. The Holmes CC transfer went 5-for-9 in a league series at Spring Hill. It’s something to rally around.